AFTER SPENDING $400 AT A VET DOG OWNER REALISED HIS LIMPING DOG WAS PLAYING FOLLOW THE LEADER
Russell Jones noticed something was wrong with his Lurcher, Billy, when he had to use crutches after breaking his ankle. The dog began to limp on walks, and in a video that Jones shared on Facebook in the "Lurcher Link Rescue chat," he is seen wearing his cast and walking down a sidewalk, testing out his crutches. Billy walks right alongside his owner with his front paw lifted off the ground. The family understandably assumed their beloved furry friend was hurt, so they took him to the veterinarian.
In an attempt to identify the source of the issue, they spent about $400 on two veterinary examinations, paw and leg x-rays, and pain medication. Unfortunately, veterinarians were unable to diagnose their cherished pet's condition and informed the family that there was nothing they could do. Billy went into the garden to play when the Joneses got home from the veterinarian's office. His limp vanished like magic, and he began to run. There was "nothing wrong," as Jones states in his Facebook post. Billy was apparently merely mimicking his injured owner's caring behaviour.
The endearing but humorous video quickly gained widespread popularity. Billy's acting skills were featured on news stations worldwide and garnered over 42,000 Facebook reactions and 58,000 shares. Numerous viewers responded with amusing tales of comparable pet-related circumstances. "Wouldn't let me touch it, wouldn't sit on [it], [it] plainly was aggravating him," wrote one user, who described a moment when they thought their pet Oscar's tail was broken. The commenter disclosed that he "started wagging his tail staring at me" while they were paying for the veterinary visit. Emptying my wallet is his love language.
Jones shared a new video a month later in February 2021 with the witty remark, "What goes around comes around, Bill." The two were seen walking down the same sidewalk in the video. This time, however, the pup was wearing the cast because Billy had just had his dew claw removed. Jones seemed to be fake limping, but Billy was limping—for real this time. Jones received comments like "You need a red bandage too" and "Great fake limp" from viewers of the previous video.
"Hello everyone, wanted to tell you on here that my Billy ran over the [rainbow] today," Jones regrettably said in the Facebook group in March 2022. It was time to say farewell to him because he had lung cancer. This is where our five minutes of fame started, so I wanted to share it with you here.
"Dogs may have amazing empathy for their owners, as scientists have shown," said Michelle, Jones' wife. Billy's empathy, however, was extraordinary; he pretended to be in pain in order to show Russell how much he was loved. That's really smart, in my opinion. Dogs are incredible.
But Billy's tale was far from ended. Billy received the People's Pet Awards' Internet Sensation award posthumously on September 8, 2022. "It's simply amazing that he was given such a particular award, and it preserves his memory," Jones says. "We are really saddened that his tale has been shared with millions of people worldwide, but we also miss him very much."